New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-01-02
SUPPLEMENT.
PAGES 9 TO IL.
SHERMAN AND LOGAN.
rt,xrRAL SHERMAN DESCRIBES THEIR PEN
ShNh"' sONAL RELATIONS.
LETTERS EXPLAINING A MIsUNDEhslAND
ING OF THE WAR
cOpyrtqht The Tribune Association 1850 a ,ooe
NEw-YoRK, Dec. 90, 1885,

.,;,,v.Tr LETTERS EXPLAINING A MlsoNDh"
ING OF THE WAR
coo,,rioht The Tribune Association 1901 80,
'"PS''' NEw-YoRK, Dec. 2s, 1856.
WHITELAw REID, Esq ,a nm.
DEAR SIR: The recent SAD anu
.suected death Of -ucherm Jun" NV
F, ncon makes il oppOrtune, IN lily
,r,gment. to make plain what other"ise n'e To
ain obscure touching our personal relations. ~
49, end prefer to make public correspondence
tween us in the month of February, 1883, wiiIr
- Ton, snocches made at the "CorKhiii
80. - y;von me- ON the Sth Of that mohlh III
aeh;nrton in AMI icipatiOn of my retirement
am the active command of the army i'ioio
oro nrosent at that banquet many MIST dlsllh-
;shoa mon. Justices Miller. Matthews and NC
thur. Senators Sherman, Logan. Ha"ley anu
auisop MIR. Sneaker Keller, of the House ueh-
ora, sheridan. Mr. Henry Watterson and olhels
:, 40 RESPONDED 10 toasts and sentiments luii
>. count of this banquet was AT the Time pun
he'd and extract such parts of the remarks
,de by General Logan in response to the toaSO
"Tbe Volunteer Soldier" as explain the sue
teding correspondence.
GENERAL LOGAN's SPEECH.
They were ready in the storm ana III V''c sur
u Int ; they were ready in darkness or daSh II, :
zen orders came they marched they ho,ou.
hey fought; whether their guns were OF lhe ues,
tuality or not whether their clothn. was au"p'ou
% their condition or not whether their iooo
as all that they would have asked or hot-Was
rot the question with these men Inc question:
IS "Where docs Sherman wanb us 10 20, ana
zen must we move? Sir, these men narched
tn him through valleys, over hills ana noun
Ms across rivers and over marshes and the only
estion asked in all these campa ms was :" mere
the enemy ?" There were no questions OF mum
IS or time And for General Sherman l VIII
there was not a soldier who bore the American
z or followed IL. not a soldier who carried the
Iskct or drew a sabre. who did not respect him
; his commander. There mob one, sir, but
uld have drawn his sw I'd at any time to have
rescrved his life. There is not one to-day, no
matte what may be said. that would dim in the
slightest degree the lustrc Of that bright name
achieved by ability, by integrity and by 0ruc
bravery as an officer. And in cOnclus n let me
Say this: Whie that army, when it was dis
banded was absorbed in the community like rain
drops in the SANDAL citizens in the twlnkllng OF
an eye, and back to their professions and their
ousness-therc is not one Of these men, scattered
- they are from ocean TO ocean. who does not
honor The name of the man who led them in
triumph through the enemy's land. Wherever
lie may 60 wherever he may be. whate may
pc his coalition in life. there is not one who
would not stretch out helping hand to that brave
who led them to glory. Speaking
Cor that army if l may be permitted TO sneak for
it. have to say: May the choicest blessings
that God showers upon the head of man 90 with
him along down through his life It is the
prayer Of every soldier who served under him
CORRESPONDENCE AFTER THE BANQUET.
GENE SHERMAN TO GENERAL LOGAN.
WASHINGTON D. c.. Sunday Feb. IL. 1883.
GEN. JOHN A. LOGAN. u. s. Senate, Washington, ID. c.
DEAR GENERAL: This is rainy Sun
Jay, good day to clear up old
scores, and hope you will receive what
propose to write in the same friendly spirit
in which offer it,
was very much touched by the kind and most
complimentary terms in which you spoke OF me
personally at the recent Corlllill banquet on the
anniversary Of my sixty-tlird birthday, and have
since learned that you still feel "A wish that l
should somewhat qualify the language | used in
iuy memoirs, volume 2, pages IS and sc, givinr
the reasons why General o. o. Howard was
recommended by me to succeed Mcpherson in the
command of the Army of the Tennessee, when by
the ordinary rules OF the service the choice
should have fal en- you. i confess frankly that
my ardent wish is to retire from the command Of
the army with the kind and respectful FEELINGS
of Ill men especially Of those who were with me
in the days Of the civil war, which must give to
me and to my family chief clamon the graft
h,de OF the people Of the United States
confess that have tortured and twisted the
words used on the pages referred TO, so as 10
contain my meaning better without offending
you but so far without success I honestly be
hcye that no man to-day hollis in higher honor
than myself the conduct and acti n of John A.
Logan from the hour when lie realized that the
South meant war Prior to the war all men hal
doubts. but the moment Fort Sumter was fired
m from bat eies in Char estOn these doubts dssi-
/ led rs a fog. and from that hour thcnccforth
your course was manly, patriotic and sublime
throughout the whole war ] know of no single
mans more complete than yours.
Now as to the s'ecfc matter Of this letter.
= ViclSsbrrg in the fall Of 1863 by order Of
i"neral Grant in person, with three divisions Of
own CORPS 18th and one of MclheIsOns 10th
e. hasten to the assistance Of the Army OF the
;mbcr'end General Rosccrans commandn
which according b. the then belief had been
woIsicl at Chickamauga. Blair was with us YOU
not We marched through mud and water
four hundred miles from Memphis. and you joined
me on the march with an order 10 succeed me in
mmand OF the 18th Corps, q Presidential ap-
intmcnt. which Blair had exercised temporarily
air al that time member Of Congress-
aftcrwar1 named to command the 18th
rs and actually remained LONG In Washing
that had got TO Big Shanty before he
'rtOOS us. Again afer the battles Of Missionary
lie and Knox illc when Howard scrvedwith me
mt back 10 Vicksbury and Meridian leaving you
command # the 18th Corps along the railroad
m Stevenson te Decatur. l was gone three
'nths, and when / got back you complained To
bitterly against Gcor'e II. Thomas, that he
aimed for the Army OF the Cumberland every
Fns. and almost denied the Army of the Ten
ssee any use OF the railroads. | sustained you
d put all army and cors commanders on an
ual footing. making their orders AMI rcquist ions
equal force on the depot officers and railroad
icials in Nashville Thomas was extremely
cnsitive On that point and as you well know had
much feeling against you personally which he did
not conceal. You also went To Illinois moro than
nee to make speeches and so absent after
.e capture of Atlanta at the time started for
asannah, and did not join until we had
4ched Sal annah.
Now l have never questioned the right or
! 1fricty Of you and Blair holding fast to your
g nstitucnts by the usual methods 1t was natural
End right, but IL did trouble me to have my
q rps commanders serving two distinct causes. one
D. litary and the other civil political and this
did influence ME when was forced to make choice